SHOWCARD CARES
A modeling career is a business. It can be exciting, creative, and rewarding. It can also mean navigating contracts, unfamiliar people, unpredictable income, and difficult decisions, sometimes without much guidance.
We built Showcard around a simple belief: the people doing this work deserve the tools, information, and support to build careers on their own terms.
Showcard Cares brings together independent organizations and practical resources for staying informed, protecting your rights, and getting help when you need it.
You shouldn't have to figure everything out alone. If a situation feels unsafe, coercive, or exploitative, these independent organizations can help you understand your options.
In immediate danger? Call your local emergency number (911 in the United States). Showcard is not an emergency response or crisis counseling service. Call 911 (United States)
For concerns about inappropriate on-the-job conduct, agency relationships, or other problems involving modeling work. The Model Alliance says information shared with its support staff is confidential, subject to legal reporting obligations, including some situations involving minors.
Contact MA Support (opens the organization's website)Free, confidential support from trained staff for people affected by sexual assault or abuse, 24/7.
Confidential help, referrals, and reporting for potential labor or sex trafficking, available 24/7. This is not a general modeling-advice line.
A nonprofit led by concern for fashion workers' rights, including workplace protections, safer working conditions, transparency, and accountability. Its resources cover agency concerns, child-model protections, AI, and relevant laws.
Explore Model AllianceEducation, advocacy, and resources focused on personal safety, professional boundaries, consent, and confronting predatory conduct in the fashion industry.
Explore MAACThe Model Alliance explains New York's Fashion Workers Act, which adds protections for models and regulates model-management companies. The rules are specific to New York; don't assume they apply to every booking worldwide.
Read about the Fashion Workers ActPractical guidance on verifying agencies and scouts, checking contracts, understanding international assignments, and recognizing signs of potential exploitation.
Read Advice for ModelsHow to recognize misleading job promises, demands for upfront payments, pressure to sign, and other warning signs. Includes advice on checking an agency's claims and reporting fraud.
Read the FTC guideYou can ask questions, take time to check the details, and seek independent advice.
Your appearance and creative work are valuable. Before agreeing to image use, including AI training, digitally altered photographs, or a replica of your likeness, understand what permission is being requested and how that work may be used.
Industry advocacy and resources focused on models' control over their images.
Read about AI and image rightsA free tool for adults dealing with non-consensual sharing of intimate images. It works with participating platforms and has limitations.
Visit StopNCII.orgA free service from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children for explicit images or videos taken when someone was under 18, even if that person is now older.
Visit Take It DownThese are independent resources. Showcard cannot guarantee that any third party can remove every image or resolve every case.
Protecting your career also means understanding its business side: bookings, agreements, commissions, expenses, irregular income, and taxes.
U.S.-specific guidance for people whose modeling work is treated as self-employment, including recordkeeping and estimated taxes. Your tax status and obligations depend on your circumstances; consult a qualified professional when needed.
Visit the IRS tax centerShowcard's free model workspace, for models aged 18 and over, is designed to help working models organize portfolios, bookings, earnings, and career information. It is not a substitute for independent legal, financial, or safety advice.
We want Showcard to make the business of modeling easier. We also want it to be part of an industry where people are informed, respected, fairly treated, and able to speak up.
Independent by design. Better together.
Organizations linked here are independent of Showcard. Listing a resource does not imply endorsement, sponsorship, or a formal affiliation. Resources and laws vary by location. Information on this page is educational, not legal, financial, or medical advice. If you need urgent help, use local emergency services or a qualified support organization.